He points to a Donga Ilbo poll last week, showing that “4.5 percent of South Koreans think North Korea means to start a war. In contrast, a CNN poll reveals that 51 percent of Americans think the latest round of name-calling will only end in war, and 41 percent think North Korea is an ‘immediate threat’ to the U.S.”

What for? asks Kang:

Reading the entire statements by the KCNA would actually give a fairly clear view of North Korea’s position. The problem is that most North Korean statements reported in the Western press are done so with the first clause missing. That is, almost all North Korean rhetoric is of the form “IF you attack us first, we will hit you back.” Incidentally, that’s what we’re telling the North Koreans, too.

If you can ignore the hilarious Communist-style rhetoric about ‘capitalist running dogs’ and the like, the situation is actually quite stable, because despite their bluster, the North Korean rhetoric is also cast almost entirely in deterrent terms.